The Russian invasion into Afghanistan changed the way in which people were able to carry out their daily lives. Afganistan was changed forever.
The Invasion
Russian soldiers marched into to Afghanistan for many different reasons. They saw the Communist movement in Afghanistan was growing weaker, and wanted to preserve it since it's only support was through the Afghan military. The Russians were also interested in expanding their Asian territory, and keeping Afghanistan away from the interests of Iran and other western nations. They secured Kabul in 1979 and placed their puppet leader, Babrak Karmal, in order to have some sort of control. As they headed their way into the country side, they were met with resistance from the Mujaheddin. The struggle happened over a course of ten years.
The Resistance The Mujaheddin, a group of radical Pashtun Muslims saw the Russians attempt to gain Afghanistan as a defilement of Islam, and put a Jihad ("holy war") on the Russian troops. This gained the Islamic's support for the Mujaheddin's cause, due to the Jihad being a religious movement. The US secretly supported and supplied the Mujaheddin with weapons and money, which helped in their victorious guerrilla fighting tactics against the Soviets.
The Refugees Due to the rural population of Afghanistan aiding the Mujaheddin, the Russians tried to eliminate all civilian population in the countryside. Bombs were dropped, mines were placed, violence was dished out to poor innocent civilians including women and children. Frightened civilians fled from Afghanistan to their neighboring country Pakistan and were housed in Refugee camps which quickly became unsanitary and insufficiently supplied.
The Occupation Following the invasion was the long period of soviet occupation of the majority of Afghanistan, battling pockets of resistance here and there for much of the nine years of the war. Contrary to the Russians’ original belief, this occupational period did not produce the desired effect, to quell the rebellions and fully take over. In reality it only strengthened the resolve of the rebelling forces while encouraging even more nationalistic zeal.
Soviet OffensivesAfter the initial occupation failed, the soviets began moving into just largely populated urban areas in order to concentrate attacks, this action allowed the Afghans living outside towns to largely ignore the law.
The Withdraw
In 1989, Soviet forces pulled out of Afghanistan. Fifteen thousand Soviet soldiers and countless Afghans had been killed in the decade-long war. Billions of dollars had been spent each year to support troops in Afghanistan. Unable to defeat the Mujaheddin and pressed by world opinion to leave Afghanistan, Soviet leader Gorbachev decided that the USSR had to get out. In part, the tide of the war had been turned by the introduction of US-made shoulder-launched antiaircraft missiles in 1987. With these missiles, the Mujaheddin shot down Soviet planes and helicopters every day, increasing the monetary and human cost of the war, and making Soviet strike tactics ineffective. Demoralized and with no victory in sight, the USSR's forces left Afghanistan. What led to the Russians in Afghanistan?
Traditionally, Afghanistan is never taken over by any oneThere is another country which has been historically impossible to invade except for the Mongols, that country is Russia
However, the reason the Mongols were not successful in their invasion was due to the death of the Great Khan (Genghis Khan) around the time of the invasion
The Russians have historically been a very strong people, similar to the Afghans
When Russia was first emerging as a unified conglomorate, the leaders were seriously considering adopting Islam as the unified religion, but opted for Christianity instead because of the Islamic prohibition of alcoholBoth Russia and Afghanistan have consisted of many factions
With many similarities between Russian and Afghanistan, their meet was inevitable, but what caused that spark?
The Cold War:
Cold War seperated the world into three classesBoth U.S.A. and U.S.S.R. were seeking to expand their influence into other parts of the world
First World Countries: Countries allied with the U.S.A. and supported capitalism
Second World Countries: Countries allied with U.S.S.R. and supported communism
Third World Countries: Not alligned with capitalism nor communism
In this instance, Russia was trying to Afghanistan, and the U.S.A. combatted this strategy by supporting the Mujaheddin, as previously discussed, some of which eventually became part of the Taliban
To the First and Second worlds, Afghanistan was just one more field of play to hash out the Cold War struggle
Thesis Statment
The Russian invasion into Afghanistan changed the way in which people were able to carry out their daily lives. Afganistan was changed forever.
The Invasion
Russian soldiers marched into to Afghanistan for many different reasons. They saw the Communist movement in Afghanistan was growing weaker, and wanted to preserve it since it's only support was through the Afghan military. The Russians were also interested in expanding their Asian territory, and keeping Afghanistan away from the interests of Iran and other western nations. They secured Kabul in 1979 and placed their puppet leader, Babrak Karmal, in order to have some sort of control. As they headed their way into the country side, they were met with resistance from the Mujaheddin. The struggle happened over a course of ten years.
The Resistance
The Mujaheddin, a group of radical Pashtun Muslims saw the Russians attempt to gain Afghanistan as a defilement of Islam, and put a Jihad ("holy war") on the Russian troops. This gained the Islamic's support for the Mujaheddin's cause, due to the Jihad being a religious movement. The US secretly supported and supplied the Mujaheddin with weapons and money, which helped in their victorious guerrilla fighting tactics against the Soviets.
The Refugees
Due to the rural population of Afghanistan aiding the Mujaheddin, the Russians tried to eliminate all civilian population in the countryside. Bombs were dropped, mines were placed, violence was dished out to poor innocent civilians including women and children. Frightened civilians fled from Afghanistan to their neighboring country Pakistan and were housed in Refugee camps which quickly became unsanitary and insufficiently supplied.
The OccupationFollowing the invasion was the long period of soviet occupation of the majority of Afghanistan, battling pockets of resistance here and there for much of the nine years of the war.
Contrary to the Russians’ original belief, this occupational period did not produce the desired effect, to quell the rebellions and fully take over. In reality it only strengthened the resolve of the rebelling forces while encouraging even more nationalistic zeal.
Soviet OffensivesAfter the initial occupation failed, the soviets began moving into just largely populated urban areas in order to concentrate attacks, this action allowed the Afghans living outside towns to largely ignore the law.The Withdraw
In 1989, Soviet forces pulled out of Afghanistan. Fifteen thousand Soviet soldiers and countless Afghans had been killed in the decade-long war. Billions of dollars had been spent each year to support troops in Afghanistan. Unable to defeat the Mujaheddin and pressed by world opinion to leave Afghanistan, Soviet leader Gorbachev decided that the USSR had to get out. In part, the tide of the war had been turned by the introduction of US-made shoulder-launched antiaircraft missiles in 1987. With these missiles, the Mujaheddin shot down Soviet planes and helicopters every day, increasing the monetary and human cost of the war, and making Soviet strike tactics ineffective. Demoralized and with no victory in sight, the USSR's forces left Afghanistan.
What led to the Russians in Afghanistan?
- Traditionally, Afghanistan is never taken over by any oneThere is another country which has been historically impossible to invade except for the Mongols, that country is Russia
- However, the reason the Mongols were not successful in their invasion was due to the death of the Great Khan (Genghis Khan) around the time of the invasion
- More on the Mongols: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szxPar0BcMo (very useful if you need an essay topic)
- The Russians have historically been a very strong people, similar to the Afghans
- When Russia was first emerging as a unified conglomorate, the leaders were seriously considering adopting Islam as the unified religion, but opted for Christianity instead because of the Islamic prohibition of alcoholBoth Russia and Afghanistan have consisted of many factions
- More on Russia: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etmRI2_9Q_A (very useful if you need an essay topic)
- Many connections between Russia and Afghanistan
With many similarities between Russian and Afghanistan, their meet was inevitable, but what caused that spark?- Cold War seperated the world into three classesBoth U.S.A. and U.S.S.R. were seeking to expand their influence into other parts of the world
- First World Countries: Countries allied with the U.S.A. and supported capitalism
- Second World Countries: Countries allied with U.S.S.R. and supported communism
- Third World Countries: Not alligned with capitalism nor communism
- In this instance, Russia was trying to Afghanistan, and the U.S.A. combatted this strategy by supporting the Mujaheddin, as previously discussed, some of which eventually became part of the Taliban
- To the First and Second worlds, Afghanistan was just one more field of play to hash out the Cold War struggle
- More on the Cold War: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9HjvHZfCUI (very useful if you need an essay topic)
The Cold War was the cause of the Russian presence in Afghanistan, and the deeper conflict was in the two different economic schools of thought.Timeline
What does this have to do with the book?
In addition to these factors, there is a key aspect which is embodied by Baba
Capitalism and Baba: